Creative Business Resource: Blacksburg Belle

Have you ever stumbled onto a blog or site where you just say "YES!!!" to just about everything?

Well - I came across April from Blacksburg Belle just over 2 years ago (and I'm still saying Yes!!!).

April Bowles-Olin of Blacksburg Belle

If you are creative and want to take your business to the next level or need a refresher and direction for your handmade business - you should check out her website and even consider signing up for a few of her online classes or tutorials. She offers to the point, get off your tush and focus type of advice for the creative person. Here is a taste of some of her business freebies!

So as I am personally sitting here facing another period of creative burnout (seems to come around at least once a year) - I'm going to accept that it is ok to take a break, spend time with family, and then get some lists written out and priorities into place. I plan on going back to April's site as a reference to getting my business aspects cleaned up to reflect a pulled together creative self, which - by fall - should be nearing completion.

I hope that you find her site as helpful and inspirational as I have. And that there are so many other creative people out there that struggle with finding balance in life just as I do - all in our own ways.

Make sure to add her blog to your Blog Reads (I use BlogLovin) or sign up for her email newsletter - or better yet, to make sure you get everything - BOTH!

Blacksburg Belle Recipe Post: Vegan and Gluten Free

And if you are either Vegan or Gluten Free (or have friends that are, and want to impress them with some yummy home made treats the next time they visit) - she has awesome posts for recipes!

Thank You April for being so AWESOME and giving us pointers for keeping us on track!

Storage

                                                                              by Kelli Pope

   HALLELUJAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!      I have storage.     I haven't worked on jewelry all week, but I

now

  have

  storage

space

         When we bought our house, it had a basement garage.  GREAT for storage..  Load up for a show, and drive out.  Come home from a show, back in, unload.    Perfect.     Right?

UNTIL, construction near our subdivision began, and changed our water levels.   Our street started to flood after heavy rains, and it ran straight down our driveway, backing up all of our drains, and filling up our basement (yes, filling.   4-5 feet of water)   After this happening twice in 2006 alone,  enough was enough.   We closed up the garage, and angled the driveway up toward the house.   No more garage, but also, no more flooding.

AND I lost my easy access storage.   For years I've dragged the art show tables, tents, totes, etc etc etc, around the house, up and down the basement steps and filled up my studio space.

Last weekend we invested in a most WONDERFUL thing.    A storage shed.   (yeah, I know... whoop-dee-doo.    A shed.    Seems like just yesterday, I got excited about new shoes........ oh well)     But OH what a GLORIOUS THING!!!!!!     Now instead of unloading, hauling up and down, dragging all of this.....

NOW, I can just back in and unload it HERE!!!!

4.5x7ft of WONDERFUL, waterproof, lockable, local storage space!!!  

                        How convenient is that!!!!!!!!?????      (Frisco decided the picture needed a little more interest :o)

                             Isn't she BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!    :o)  

I know, I know, it's not jewelry.  You're saying..  "it's just a shed"..... But I can spend more time MAKING jewelry, and less time unloading, dragging, unpacking, stacking and storing show equipment.   ... oh, and spending more time with these guys. 

 (Why oh why did we not do this YEARS ago??)

      Although no time has been available lately to make jewelry, or get beads glazed and fired, a new enameled set was finished...  And since this IS a jewelry blog.... thought maybe I should end with it.

Pink and purple sure aren't my favorite colors, but I can't keep it in stock when I have it. So, pink it is!

Not What I Planned, but it's ok

by Staci L. Smith

 

It is no secret that I love Lisa Peters Art's donut style beads.  You can see them in about 40% of my designs (ok- maybe not 40% but I use them a lot).  Lately, she has been making these flowers, and I hated to string them with wire the way I normally do with them, because it would have covered too much of the design.

 

an older design with the wire across the donut

 

 

I have great flowers like this one below that I want to use and didn't want to cover it up

 

I thought I would prong set them, but the copper and the silver were not co-operating.  The backing was too big, and it was taking too much heat- I have trouble getting copper and silver to work together a lot of the times.

 

 

So instead I came up with this design for prong setting, and it goes on the back- AND IT'S PRETTY...bonus!

 

 

It lies on the back like this

 

 

 

All but two of the prongs get folded around (after some antiquing and such) and the two on each side become the connectors to use it in your design. 

 

I had so much fun figuring this design out.  I was so very frustrated at first when I realized my plan wasn't working.  However, if it had, then I wouldn't have had this happen.  And once I get over the initial frustration- I do like a challenge. 

 

Furthermore, I botched up some of the spirals and pieces as I made them, so them these were born too.

 

 

They are squiggly little focal components that you can hang charms from.  Half are getting a fancy patina right now, and the rest will be antiqued and stuff.  They will be available at Bead Fest.

 

So, the moral of this little blog post is, if it isn't working out they way you had planned, run with it, it may turn out even better!

 

 

 

 



We're So Sari

If you haven't yet discovered the sari silk ribbon, let me introduce you to its versatility and the vibrancy it can add to your designs.

It's  just perfect for wrapping and and the fringy edges only add a bit of fun texture.

Here I have wrapped a silver choker that I bought in Bali several years ago when I was visiting my brother.  Yes, I'm am pretty lucky to have a brother living in the center of one of the most artistic paradises on earth!

After wrapping the sari silk ribbon you simply secure it by wrapping the wire of your choice over your fabric wrap.

I've used a ScorchedEarthOnEtsy ceramic piece by Petra as a focal piece here.

The beauty of some of these silk ribbons is that they can be multicolored or "color shift" all in one ribbon. This was made with a single ribbon and wrapped with oxidized silver fill wire.

The focal piece is a nice polymer paisley by Heather Powers of HumbleBeads.

I wrapped some of my double ended copper wire lampwork that I call "baubles"

(I hope to return to making some more of these as it's been a long while since I have had any in my inventory)

You can dress up some earrings and it lends some softness to your design as  LoveRoot did here.

Here's just a sample of a sari silk ribbon search on Etsy.

Guess who just earned how to take a screen shot this week!

I first got my taste of sari silk ribbon from MudhoundStudio shop but you can find larger amounts at Darn Good Yarn. She has a great and reasonably priced selection

I was dabbling in the fabric realm last week and this wrap is made with some sari trim that I picked up on my visit to India as well as some vintage lace and fringy linen from a thrift shop and some other trim I got from a trade with Lorna from Artymess.

What if?

Those simple two words may be the most important question a designer can ask. That holds true for the jewelry designer as much as for the architect or the engineer or the cook. It is when we are our most child-like, questioning the status quo, imagining possibilities. It is what allows us to break out of our boxes, our molds, our boundaries and create something new.

Creativity doesn't occur in a vacuum.  We use what we have, what we know, what we see - to create something new.  Sometimes it is with intent; sometimes it seems more by accident/incident.

I will find myself looking at (or beading a made-to-order version) of one of my existing designs, like this early signature Sand Fibers cuff.

I can't even recall how I came up with the original motif, but it was one of my very first graphed designs (hence the name).  I can't even recall how many different color combinations I have beaded this in over the years.  But that's all beside the point...

One day last year, I was working with the design and wondered, "What if I superimpose a mirrored version of the motif...?"  I graphed out the "new" design but didn't have time to bead it up myself. My Sand Fibers Beta Beader Alicia Hartley came to the rescue and so I will get to release Vortex as a new Sand Fibers pattern later on today.

After Alicia finished beading this prototype, she asked "What if you doubled it?"  She thought she was being quite creative (and she was), but I had already beat her to the question...and answered it.

I love "What if?"

Be well and get going!
Carol Dean

Art Jewelry Boot Camp Work Out Round Up

Good Morning! I thought I would highlight some of my favorites from last week Boot Camp blog hop! If you missed seeing all of the beautiful designs, you can always go back and hop! I know everyone would love to have you visit their blog and read your comments.

by Fresh Baked Designs

I love the free form nature of these beautiful flower shapes! The wire wrapping around the gemstone round is also very innovative!

by the moon and seven stars

I've long been wanting to try a bit of coiling and these links really have my brain spinning!

by Mary Harding Jewelry

And finally, I love the organic and asymmetrical focal piece that Mary made!  The circle bit is somewhat reminiscent of a medicine wheel which appeals to me!

A GREAT BIG THANK YOU to everyone who participated and stay tuned for our next boot camp coming up in just a few weeks!

embracing change

mary jane dodd

 

'release' mjd 2013

releasing can be critical to your ability to rebound. 

metal work is shelved for me right now - 

so i decided to focus a bit

upon my use of fibers. 

a basket for wearing mjd 2013

to allow myself to explore things more fully

that i had wished to try before. 

soft summer whites mjd 2013

finding ways to make the knotting, weaving and threading 

from my youth

a bit more grown up.

grow mjd 2013

thinking of ways to make bits of this and that into something

a designer might like to work with. 

if you are attracted to using fibers in your work,

i encourage you to always think about the strength of your material

and how it will wear over time as it rubs against metal.

how it can support the weight of your pendant or other components.

i personally love using waxed irish linen thread 

for its strength and knotting abilities. 

if you're new to fibers and are looking for some inspiration, 

take a look at 

bohemian-inspired jewelry

a book created around the use of fibers in jewelry. 

i think i speak for most of us when i say 

that making/creating/exploring is not just something 

we like to do, 

but something 

we have to do.

if you find your life turned upside down, 

be open to new ways

of expressing yourself.

then give yourself permission

to sink into them. 

not only will you be learning

a new skill,

but you will begin to heal

in ways

that modern medicine cannot fix you.

it will be the balm 

that soothes your spirit. 

-----------------------------------

for the winner of the giveaway please check the sidebar!

Tell Me A Story - The Art of Personal Adornment by Karen McGovern

If you are reading and following this blog, I'm guessing you love to create.  Art is such an amazing form of expression, whatever the medium.  For many of us who create art jewelry, the process is so much more than a desire to make something pretty.  Staci just wrote a great post about the use of symbolism in jewelry design, which resonated with me because almost everything I create has a story or some sort of symbolism associated with it.  I love creating designs that tell a "tale", and in fact often include a short story or poem with the design.  I created a series called "Sacred  Salvage".  Necklaces and rings inspired by a poems and stories I wrote.  They incorporate vintage photos, antiques and odd bits and pieces.  I even put them all together in a book.  Take a peek, I'm donating all the book sales proceeds to the Rare Species Conservatory Foundation in support of wildlife conservation.

 

Anyway, whenever I teach a class, I always encourage my students to include something personal in their designs.  This is especially wonderful in mixed media work.  You can create AMAZING, personal and expressive works incorporating photos, buttons, bits of broken jewelry, ticket stubs, love notes, postcards, it's ENDLESS!  Tell a story, your story, in your designs.  What a wonderful way to create lasting memory...I have worked with clients incorporating family photos, notes and buttons into beautiful lockets, and even once incorporated opossum teeth into a ring for a woman who spent her life working in a wildlife rehab center!

For this post, I'm going to show you one of my favorite "Sacred Salvage" designs using brass or copper sheet, an optic lens, and a vintage photograph.   It's a surprisingly easy design to make, all cold connected.

 

This photo is of my Grandfather holding my Father when he was a baby. 
I treasure this...

First, choose a photo that will look nice behind the optic lens.  Optic lenses are readily available online, Etsy is a great source for them.  I scour my local antique shops and monthly local antique fair for vintage photos and tintypes.  I LOVE THEM.  I also have a great collection of family photos dating back a few generations.  You can also find spectacular photos online.  Just Google "vintage tintypes" and make sure the images aren't copyright protected.  Also, if you don't want to use the original photos, print a good hi res copy on high quality photo paper that won't fade.

Lay the lens on a sheet of 24 or 26 gauge brass or copper sheet and mark a pleasing shape around the lens with a Sharpie.  I like a shape that is sort of shield-like.  Leave enough space for elements that will be used to hold the lens in place, and allow you to drill holes for your chain, etc.  Cut out the shape with metal shears (or a saw) and file the edges smooth.  You may want to texture the edges (hammer, file, etc.), do whatever pleases you including adding patina, color, etc.  Next, cut the photo/image to fit the lens.  Center the image where you plan the lens to lay, and glue it in place with Modge Podge or some other simple craft glue.  I do not glue the image to the lens itself.  The lenses are sometimes concave, and the glue may show when it dries.  If your image is on thin paper (like magazine paper or parchment) you should seal it before glueing with a coat of Modge Podge.  After drying, place the lens over the image with the lens handle facing down.  Mark a drill spot through the handle of the lens to the brass/copper base with a fine Sharpie.  If your handle doesn't have a hole, drill or punch one!  This will be the first set point for the lens.  Drill or punch a 1/16th hole, place the lens on and use a micro screw, nut and decorative bead to hold the lens in place.  For my "Familia" pendant shown above, I used a sterling gear layered with a copper gear, lightly dapped.  You need at least two more set points to hold the lens, one on either side near the top (so the lens cannot move side to side or shift).  I chose tiny base metal coin charms for my pendant, drilled through and placed so the edges of the coins overlapped the edge of the lens, effectively wedging it in place.  Again, mark your drill spots, drill or punch, and use micro-screws and nuts to secure.  Drill or punch two holes for hanging on a chain, and you're basically done.  As you can see from the included photos below, you can add so much to these pendants to tell your story.  Add elements above and below the image, add text to the image, layer transparency images, add dried/pressed flowers,  insect wings, whatever you can find!  AND, don't forget the pendant back!  Prior to glueing your photo down you can flat rivet metal bits, gears, period coins, buttons, stamp text, etch...the ideas are only limited by your imagination!  Dont be scared to write your story down, and include it with the piece.  It is so much more meaningful, and a lovely way to preserve your tale while creating a real heirloom design.  FYI, these make FANTASTIC gifts!

I have included here a few images of some "storybook" designs...some are incredibly personal to me and were wonderfully cathartic to create.  Who needs therapy when we have ART, amiright???



I love the slightly "creepy" aspect to using very old photos and tintypes.
My imagination runs wild wondering about the lives of the subjects...
The designs above are called (clockwise) "Age of Innocence",
"Field Notes", "Odd Girl", and "Take Flight"
 

Please share your stories and design inspirations, and by all means, EXPRESS YOURSELF!

Symbolism in Jewelry : Cairns

by Staci L. Smith

We took a family trip to north to the mountains of PA this past weekend.  Now, if you follow me at all, you know I love the sea side, but, I could

 love it in green hills with rolling creeks too. It would be perfect to have a home in both places.  Perhaps someday.............. 

 

If you want to, you can read about the trip here on my personal blog.  It was fantastic.

Anyhow, while we were there, we collected rocks.  Being right by Pine Creek was pretty awesome, and not only were there billions of perfect river stones, but fossils too.  Tons and tons of small marine fossils in the shale, sandstone and limestone rocks. 

You should know that my love of beads and jewelry started as a love for rocks.

 

Here is a peek at the hoard I brought home.



I plan to bezel the fossil rocks that are small enough, like the one above.  However, the rivers stones were going to be drilled, so that I could use them in jewelry and even sell some sets too.

Where does the symbolism come in?  Read on..................

As soon as we started rock collecting in the mountains, my mom suggested we build some cairns'.  I have always loved the look of cairns- or stacked rocks.  You can read more about them here.  They are often used as trail markers or memorials. 

Here is where the symbols come in.  As you know, I use a lot of spirals in my jewelry, because I just love spirals!  And spirals often symbolize a journey.  I instantly knew that I would make Journey Cairns or journey markers for necklaces using stacked rocks and spirals.

So I got to drilling, ripped out my leather, and make a couple of these.  They are reminiscent of my sea glass stacks that I have made in the past.  The difference is, these have meaning to them. 

 

 

What a nice souvenir- and I even added a little fossil stone at the bottom!  I think there will be more to come!

 

 I may do some with sea glass and river stones, for those who love the water like me, from its origins in the mountains to its journeys end at the sea.  Or even add some turquoise, since it has often been known as a stone of protection....just to add some more meaning to each piece.  Do you use symbols in your jewelry? 



 

Resin - A Love/Hate Relationship by Karen McGovern

Resin has come a long way, baby. I've recently been experimenting with jeweler's resin, thanks to the inspiration of Susan Lenart Kazmer and her Ice Resin. Ice Resin is a fairly recent development in the mixed media art jewelry world, an easy to use, crystal-clear resin specific for jewelry design. The possibilities are endless...fill bezels and embed gems, color it with inks or powders, layer it, add metals, glitter, dried flowers, coat art paper, anything you can think of. It's quite amazing what you can do with a bit of imagination and some free time.

As you probably figured out from the title of this post, I both love and hate resin. I love it because my head is filled with a million ideas to use it, I hate it because I am the most impatient person on Earth and have limited time and space to work on jewelry in the first place. Working with resin takes time, patience, and attention to detail. Three strikes, I'm out!

For those of you that haven't tried Ice Resin (or similar products, the are several jeweler's resins out there now), I encourage you to do so, but be prepared. You need a dedicated, clean space to work, and a clean, dust-free space to cure. Cure time is at least 24 hours. I'm including some links and photos here of my favorite products and artists working with resin to inspire you. It really is a fantastic art product that totally frustrates the Hell out of me! I long to be able to create works like these, from Altered Alchemy and Susan...gorgeous! Sigh....

I am a schizophrenic artist at best. I flit between projects, never make the same thing twice, and jump between media like a jack rabbit. I also screw up...a LOT. So, I shall share my most recent resin screw-up, which I actually managed to salvage, thanks to a surprising automotive product. Are you on the edge of your seats yet??

I recently was inspired to make a ring based on a pomegranate. I constructed a brass ring with a dish-style bezel. Really pleased with how that turned out. I planned to fill the dish with tiny garnets in resin, representing pomegranate seeds. As usual, I was going for broke, in a hurry, and mixed what I thought was the perfect amount of resin, and set my garnets. Lovely. I carefully placed the ring in a clamp, set it in a dust free space (a shelf in my kitchen) and tried not to have a brain embolism waiting 24 hours. The next day I snatched the ring from the clamp and found the garnets resting in a pile of sticky goo. What the...?? Okay, maybe it needs to cure a bit more....imagine the Jeopardy theme song in the back of your mind as I waited, and waited. Test number two, now 48 hours...still a pile of goo, with garnets in it. Craptastic! At this point I had to accept that I had not mixed the resin correctly. I obviously used too much resin and not enough hardener, even though I thought I was being very careful. You need to be precise, one part resin, one part hardener. Soooo, I spent an hour scraping the mess out of the setting. When I was done, the setting was free of most of the resin glob, but still coated with a film of sticky gunk. How to clean? I didn't 't want to use paint thinner, I was afraid it would affect the patina I had painstakingly created on the brass. Salvation came in the form of a can of WD40. I knew WD40 worked well to remove adhesive residue, so I spritzed it into the setting, and wiped it around with a Q-Tip. Viola! The resin wiped away completely, and the patina wasn't affected at all. Rinse, dry, ready to go again. This time I used calibrated syringes to measure out the resin and hardener, mixed, poured, set the stones, and THANK YOU JESUS IT WORKED.

WD40, the miracle in a can, and the ring that tried to kill me.

The moral of this story? Patience is indeed a virtue, which I do not possess...and, WD40 is pretty awesome.

Also, there is another type of resin out there for those of us who need instant gratification. UV resin. Lisa Pavelka's Magic Gloss is a pre-mixed, ready to pour resin that cures in sunlight in about 5 minutes. It must be exposed to UV light to cure, you can even purchase a UV bulb set-up specific for this resin. Nunn Design also has their own version, and the product is fantastic. BUT, you cannot color or free-embed anything using this resin, since the UV light has to penetrate completely to cure (yes, I learned this the hard way). I love this product for coating paper/photos or filling bezels that are fixed with items glued down to the base. Resin-coated papers are my favorite thing at the moment...more on that in my next post--"Resin-nating" (see what I did there??).

 

A necklace I made featuring vintage nudes UV-resin set in steel wire frames.





Until then, give resin a try and let me know,what you think. Share some pics and stories about your experiences. Stay sticky, my friends....

 

Ceramic and Enamel Giveaway

It is time for a giveaway! It's been some time since we have had one, while we have been trying to reorganize. Thank-you to everyone who participated in the blog hop! If you have not visited the different blogs yet, please check it out here.

Today I will keep this short and easy. To win these beautiful ceramic beads by Kelli Pope or enameled rounds like the ones pictured (by me), please head over and "like" us on FaceBook. Then, head on back and let us know that you did. If you already do, please share our FaceBook Like Page with three friends and let us know in the comments.

If you also create a short post on your own blogs, you can feel free to leave an additional comment and, likewise, if you share in other social medias that are equivalent to a post, add another comment.

So........ you can potentially enter up to three times!

So, there you have it.... Leave your comments and you will be entered :o) Don't forget, I will need a way to contact you, so please be sure that you have left an email or that you are easy to find through blogger. Thanks!


Thank-you for supporting artists who create handmade with handmade, MaryAnn

Art Jewelry Boot Camp: Wire Work Out Blog Hop!

Welcome to our Art Jewelry Boot Camp Wire Work Out Blog Hop! We want to see what you've been busy creating with wire!

Hop along by following the links below or add your blog link to the list if you've been giving that wire a work-out!

Beautiful Wire Workouts by our own Staci Louise!

And if you're hopping, show those boot campers some love by leaving a comment on their blog! Want to learn more about Love My Art Jewelry's Bootcamp? Click here!

Basic Tips on Using Wire

When I started fiddling with various wire choices for jewelry making, I would pick up wire just about anywhere at all.

I found wire on spools, pre-measured lengths in small baggies, and various online sources where you can order it by the foot. When ordering precious metal - like sterling silver - larger quantities by the foot in large loose rolls is how I prefer to order it.

When you get it on tight spools, depending on the metal hardness and your project, you may need a pair of these nylon jaw pliers (above) to pull a length of the wire straight to get out the wiggles.

And when using flush cutters like above, your wire will either get a pointed end (above).

Or a flat end, depending on which edge of the cutters you use. I personally will always try to get a flat cut end on any finished jewelry to create less of a chance for a snag or sharp poke for the wearer.

Depending in the wire, you could also use a metal file, cup de-burrer, or fine grit sand paper to file the edges. Be aware that this filing will take away the edge of the top coat of the wire & color coated wire will then have the base metal exposed.

And no matter what...

Always tuck in the ends of your wire!

There is nothing more annoying then to have a bit of wire poking at your skin or clothes. Give your designs a bit of a trial run to see how comfortable they are. Run your fingers over it and see if there are snags.

Having to remake something or figure out what you are doing that creates a bad design will allow you to grow and change so that you will be able to create a better finished piece!

A few more basic tips:

1. Practice with cheap wire of a similar hardness and gauge.

2. Allow yourself extra wire to work with. You can always cut off excess wire - but you cannot make that piece longer.

3. Work with your tools turning away from your body. This is not only for some safety, but also because you are putting all that tension away from your body, not towards it.

4. Save precious metal scraps in their own container & sell them back for more materials!

5. Cup your hand (like a shield) around small bits of wire as you are cutting, to keep those tiny bits from launching everywhere. Especially when working close to other people. Don't cut yourself though. Be smart...

6. Wear eye protection.

7. Use sharp tools. Dull tools can cause injury.

8. Have fun! Try new stuff! Learn from mistakes. Ask friends if you get stuck. Take notes. Take classes. But most of all - get creative and enjoy what you are doing!

Hope to see the good, the bad, the ugly, the deconstructed, and reworked pieces for tomorrow's blog wire work blog hop!